Over the years I've had various cars, some I've liked, at least one I absolutely hated, and a handful I've loved. My current car, a 2000 Chevy Tracker I bought nine years ago is one of the ones I love.
Granted, the car has had it's share of issues. Over the years I've had to replace the starter, the radiator, and the timing chain. That list doesn't count the times it was crashed into by a hit and run driver, (three months after I got the car), and when a deer ran into my car, (yes, it ran in to me, not me into it). I had to replace the driver's side door and the hood; not pretty.
The timing chain had been the most recent problem, in the past year; until a couple weeks ago. Went to start my car one morning; it tried, then stopped. Everything the car did was the same as the last time the timing chain broke.
Woke Josh, (my son), up, and he checked what he could; and agreed, it was probably the timing chain.
Josh has a friend, Zac, who's a certified auto technician, who said he'd come up and help Josh fix my Tracker; it would help save on the cost of getting the car fixed. Josh is great at working on cars; for a big project though, he wanted Zac there also.
So, during the next week, between giving me rides to work and home, Josh got all the parts and equipment needed to fix a timing chain; thankfully it was all refundable.
When Zac first came up, he listened and checked and also thought it was the timing chain, until they pulled what needed to be pulled out of the car, and the chain was fine.
That's how the weekend started; it only went on from there. At first both guys were glad it wasn't the timing chain, it was a much easier problem to fix; or so they thought.
Long story short, anything and everything that could go wrong with fixing my car did. Simple things were made complicated by how the car is put together. It seems Chevy doesn't make it easy for anyone to work on their own car. It was crazy, to say the least.
As I said earlier, Zac is a certified auto technician, and even he was getting frustrated with my car. At one point he mentioned that now he knew why his boss said don't bring my Tracker to the shop; the guy hates them.
Eventually my car was fixed, though it now has two new nicknames. Well, it really only has one that Josh and Zac call it; however, that's not printable here, so the "nicer" name they've dubbed my Tracker is
Needless to say, both guys really do hate my car at this point. Me? What can I say? I still love my car, regardless of all that it's been through and put us through; and I plan on keeping it quite awhile longer.
Most men car owners nowadays treat their cars like their wives which is quite reasonable, in a sense. Cars are a very big investment, and they do share some very memorable experiences with us through the years. I've had my car for almost 8 years now, and it still runs like a charm. All it takes is a bit of hard work, perseverance, and a care for maintenance. Cheers to us who love our old cars!
ReplyDeleteThere’s nothing wrong in treating your car like your own wife, it only shows how much you value what you have. Anyway, it’s a good thing my wife is very understanding and she even helps me take care of my (our) car as if he’s our own child! Isn’t that sweet?
ReplyDeleteI certainly get your point. The experiences you’ve shared with your car are worth more than the price of money. It’s the feeling that you have bonded with your car and that you have created wonderful memories with it that just tells you it’s wrong to let go of it. I can understand you because I’ve got an old car of my own. It’s been with me throughout college, through my first job, and it’s still with me now, even though I’ve got a new car to drive to and from work. It’s my baby, and I’m never letting go of it.
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